The National Motorsports Press Association award-winning online home of Dave "The Godfather" Moody.

Monday, October 14, 2013

Waltrip Will Field Two Full-Time Cars In 2014

Controversy surrounding the
regular-season finale at Richmond International Raceway has already cost
Michael Waltrip Racing a sponsor. Now, it appears it will cost
them a full-time race team.

Multiple sources tell
GodfatherMotorsports.com today that MWR will scale back from three full-time NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series entries to two next season, after being unable to attract a
new sponsor to replace departing NAPA Auto Parts. NAPA announced last month
that it will end its association with MWR at the end of the 2013 season,
terminating its contract two years early due to unhappiness with the team’s
attempt to manipulate the outcome of a recent race at Richmond.

MWR co-owner Rob Kaufman said
recently that he is unlikely to fund a full season of racing for the No. 56
Toyota, and driver Martin Truex, Jr., has been given permission to negotiate
with other teams. He is expected to replace Kurt Busch at Furniture Row Racing
when Busch joins Stewart Haas Racing at season’s end.

MWR currently employs more
than 300 people, and scaling back one of its three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entries
will result in approximately a 15% reduction in workforce, or 45 employees. Sources
close to the team say the No. 56 Toyota could run a part-time schedule in 2014,
if sufficient sponsorship is found.

MWR has not confirmed the
cutback, but sources say team employees will be informed of the move this
afternoon.

How sad. Kind of saw it coming but to read this - the whole thing is really sad - and then to think what led to this. Those 45 employees - likely many with families and mortgages - right before the holidays. Sad.

I like truex but calling him completely innocent is wrong. I am sure there was talk around the teams about helping him. He may not have known what but I am sure he knew. Just because he said nothing on radio does not prove he didn't.

Blaming napa is not fair. Blame the ones that did wrong and was so stupid to say it on the radio.

It is a true testament to the scam that is the NASCAR brand. For those that have had inside exposure understand that it is not a racing organization geared toward true race car drivers but nothing more than a marketing machine. You bring food to the machine ($$$) and you are allowed to be part of the machine as long as you don't come up short on food. The food gets scarce and they are on to the next food source. If the sponsors ran their companies like this organization is run they would be put in jail. A friend once said that the reason there is not a NASCAR race in the New York Metro area is the fact that New York already has five families and they don't want to invite in a sixth one.